Review: Tree-free copy paper

TreeZero's TreeFrog copy paper is made without any tree products.

Although you may know how to reduce paper waste in your office through double-sided printing and other measures, there is yet another way to save the trees — tree-free copy paper. Yes, that’s right, tree-free copy paper.

TreeFrog is a paper product from TreeZero. No tree-based wood fibers are used to create the product, instead the paper is made completely from sugar cane fibers. You can recycle TreeFrog paper with the rest of your paper products, but you have another recycling option due to the product’s 100 percent sugar cane base — composting. The product is compostable, so once you’re done with the paper simply put it in your compost bin and you’re done!

Deforestation has been a concern for decades and despite educational campaigns, it remains an issue today. TreeZero is proud to say that no trees have been harmed in making their product. While sugar cane is a renewable source and it can be harvested twice a year, TreeZero does not harvest sugar cane for paper production. Instead, the company uses sugar cane byproducts to make its ISO 9001 certified paper.

My family was able to test this sugar cane paper throughout the month of October, and here’s what we thought:

Pros:

Tree-free: This was particularly interesting to my tree-loving children.

Compostable: The ability to put the paper in the compost bin instead of setting it aside for recycling is extremely convenient.

Texture: I'm a fan of the texture of this paper. While traditional copy paper is slick there is a noticeable texture to this paper, which makes it easier to handle, especially when working with multiple sheets at one time.

Standards: The paper is the standard 8.5 x 11 in size with a 20-pound weight. This is perfect for printers, copiers and paper-based fax machines. My inkjet printer readily accepted the paper because it is the standard size and weight of traditional copy paper.

Cons:

Mass testing: Due to the fact that I’m a one-woman show, business-wise, I wasn’t able to put the paper through heavy testing in a busy office.

Availability: TreeFrog paper is so new that it isn’t readily available. You can’t bike over to your local office supply store and pick up a ream. Hopefully this will change as more people are made aware of this new product.

While I only had the opportunity to test out the copy paper, there are other TreeFrog products available including a legal pad, an 8.5” x 11” spiral bound notebook, a composition book and a smaller 6” x 9.5” spiral bound notebook. I already know what I’m going to put on my back-to-school supply shopping list for next year.